George G. Sharp, Inc. is a marine design and

naval architecture Naval architecture, or naval engineering, is an engineering discipline incorporating elements of mechanical, electrical, electronic, software and safety engineering as applied to the engineering design process, shipbuilding, maintenance, and op ...

firm established in 1920 in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

by George Gillies Sharp, former Chief Surveyor of the

American Bureau of Shipping The American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) is an American maritime classification society established in 1862. Its stated mission is to promote the security of life, property, and the natural environment, primarily through the development and verific ...

. The firm started with the design of excursion steamboats on the

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...

and

Hudson Hudson may refer to: People * Hudson (given name) * Hudson (surname) * Hudson (footballer, born 1986), Hudson Fernando Tobias de Carvalho, Brazilian football right-back * Hudson (footballer, born 1988), Hudson Rodrigues dos Santos, Brazilian f ...

rivers, then moved into oceangoing passenger and cargo shipping. From 1934 Sharp designed a standardized series of merchant ships for the

U.S. Department of Commerce The United States Department of Commerce (DOC) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government. It is responsible for gathering data for business and governmental decision making, establishing industrial standards, catalyzing econo ...

. During World War II Sharp designed the standardized

Victory ship The Victory ship was a class of cargo ship produced in large numbers by American shipyards during World War II. They were a more modern design compared to the earlier Liberty ship, were slightly larger and had more powerful steam turbine engin ...

, of which 534 were built, and 50

escort carrier The escort carrier or escort aircraft carrier (U.S. hull classification symbol CVE), also called a "jeep carrier" or "baby flattop" in the United States Navy (USN) or "Woolworth Carrier" by the Royal Navy, was a small and slower type of aircraf ...

s. Some of the 1500 vessels designed by Sharp include: *

Type C2 ship Type C2 ships were designed by the United States Maritime Commission (MARCOM) in 1937–38. They were all-purpose cargo ships with five holds, and U.S. shipyards built 328 of them from 1939 to 1945. Compared to ships built before 1939, the C2s we ...

prototype *

Type C3 ship Type C3-class ships were the third type of cargo ship designed by the United States Maritime Commission (MARCOM) in the late 1930s. As it had done with the Type C1 ships and Type C2 ships, MARCOM circulated preliminary plans for comment. The de ...

prototype * SS ''Ancon'', SS ''Panama'' and SS ''Cristobal'', "World of Tomorrow" ships for the Panama Railroad Steamship line, 1939 * ''

Milwaukee Clipper SS ''Milwaukee Clipper'', also known as SS ''Clipper'' , and formerly as SS ''Juniata'', is a retired passenger ship and automobile ferry that sailed under two configurations and traveled on all of the Great Lakes except Lake Ontario. The vessel ...

'', the last passenger steamship on the Great Lakes, 1940 * Mississippi River Towboat, built for the U.S. Army Corp Engineers, 1942 *

, 534 built during World War II * , 50 built during World War II * and three other destroyer tenders based on C3 hulls during World War II * , 13 built for the U.S. Coast Guard during World War II * , and passenger cargo ships for the

Mississippi Shipping Company The Mississippi Shipping Company also known as Delta Line, was a passenger and cargo steamship company founded in 1919 in New Orleans, Louisiana. In 1961, the company officially changed its name to Delta Line. The Mississippi Shipping Company ...

South American South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

Service, 1946–47 * and storeships for the U.S. Navy in the 1950s * , class of seven for the U.S. Navy in the 1960s * NS ''Savannah'', the first nuclear-powered merchant ship * , four nuclear-powered cruisers for the U.S. Navy in the 1970s *

Staten Island Ferry The Staten Island Ferry is a fare-free passenger ferry route operated by the New York City Department of Transportation. The ferry's single route runs through New York Harbor between the Boroughs of New York City, New York City boroughs of Manh ...

s ''Andrew J. Barberi'' and ''Samuel I. Newhouse'' (1970s), ''Alice Austen'' and ''John A. Noble'' (1980s and 1990s), and the ''Guy V. Molinari'', ''Senator John. J. Marchi'' and ''Spirit of America'' (2000s). By the 1930s Sharp was described together with

Gibbs & Cox Gibbs & Cox is an American naval architecture firm that specializes in designing surface warships. Founded in 1922 in New York City, Gibbs & Cox is now headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. The firm has offices in New York City; Washington, D.C. ...

as one of the leading naval architecture firms in the United States. In 1938, he designed the passenger cargo vessel ''Cristobal'' for Panama Line Service to the Canal Zone. Sharp prepared the working drawings for the ''Casablanca class escort carrier''s built by

Henry J. Kaiser Henry John Kaiser (May 9, 1882 – August 24, 1967) was an American industrialist who became known for his shipbuilding and construction projects, then later for his involvement in fostering modern American health care. Prior to World War II, ...

California Shipbuilding Corporation __NOTOC__ California Shipbuilding Corporation built 467 Liberty and Victory ships during World War II, including ''Haskell''-class attack transports. California Shipbuilding Corporation was often referred to as Calship. History In 1916 the ' ...

in 1942–43. and the working plans for the Victory Ship series in 1943, allowing individual shipbuilding yards to modify the plans according to local practices. After World War II, the company developed a 17,000-ton luxury liner, the ''SS Del Norte'', for service between New Orleans and the east coast of South America. The Del Norte was built by the

Ingalls Shipbuilding Ingalls Shipbuilding is a shipyard located in Pascagoula, Mississippi, United States, originally established in 1938, and now part of HII. It is a leading producer of ships for the United States Navy, and, as of 2023, is the largest private em ...

Corporation at Pascagoula, Mississippi and each room featured ocean views through casement windows. The ships were characterized by a dummy funnel in which officer's quarters, radio room and emergency generator were housed. ''Del Norte'', first of the three, was described as 'today's ship of tomorrow,' it was the first cargo-passenger ship equipped with commercial radar."Liner Del Norte Is Due Thursday." ''The Times-Picayune'' (November 11, 1946), p. 10. In addition to design services, Sharp provides consultation on modification, maintenance, safety, systems integration and program management, with about 600 employees.

References

External links

George G. Sharp, Inc. website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sharp, George G. American naval architects Design companies established in 1920 1920 establishments in New York City